Will Shortz
NPR's Puzzlemaster Will Shortz has appeared on Weekend Edition Sunday since the program's start in 1987. He's also the crossword editor of The New York Times, the former editor of Games magazine, and the founder and director of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament (since 1978).
Will sold his first puzzle professionally when he was 14 — to Venture, a denominational youth magazine. At 16 he became a regular contributor to Dell puzzle publications. He is the only person in the world to hold a college degree in Enigmatology, the study of puzzles, which he earned from Indiana University in 1974.
Born in 1952 and raised on an Arabian horse farm in Indiana, Will now lives near New York City in a Tudor-style house filled with books and Arts and Crafts furniture. When he's not at work, he enjoys bicycling, movies, reading, travel, and collecting antique puzzle books and magazines.
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Every answer is a made-up two-word phrase, where the second and third letters of the first word are switched to get the second word.
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Every answer is a familiar two-word phrase or name, with the initials S.V. For example, given "noted Idaho ski resort," you would say "Sun Valley."
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Given a clue, each response is a two-word answer with the first word starting with B-R and the second word starting with R.
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Every answer is a familiar two-word phrase or name in which the first word starts with BA- and the second word starts with D-.
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Today's puzzle is a game of categories based on the word peony (a type of flower). For each category, name something in the category beginning with each of the letters P-E-O-N-Y.
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Two clues will be given. The first answer will be a brand name that sounds like it's plural; change the first letter to spell a new word that answers the second clue.
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Every answer is a word starting with "ch," and your clue will be an anagram of the word.
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Two clues will be given for two five-letter answers. Move the middle letter of the first answer to the end of the word to get the second answer.
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For each set of three words, find a word that can precede each one to complete a familiar two-word phrase or name. The first word in each set will name an animal.
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Every answer is a compound word or familiar two-word phrase or title in which each word has OU as its second and third letters.